William Hurt
I am led to understand that he’s got an enormous ego. That he would inform you that he is one of the greatest actors of his generation. At least we would have something to agree on.
I think that more than any other accomplished current actor, he projects absolute chilling cold in almost every performance. He comes across smart, intensely quiet, and sometimes cruel. He had this quality from his earliest film roles from his film debut in 1980 with Altered States. He’s appeared in around 60 films, and though he occasionally missteps, particularly in recent years, he still pulls in important roles with the likes of Cronenberg.
He’s also responsible for one of my favorite Saturday Night Live moments. When Kathleen Turner hosted, a few years after co-starring with Hurt in Body Heat, he appeared during her monologue to bemoan her appearance on a show that he would “never appear on.” It seemed so perfectly, condescendingly right, and this is coming from an admirer.
If you’ve not seen it in a while, I highly recommend Broadcast News; Hurt, Holly Hunter, and Albert Brooks are all perfect in it.
Ten best roles
10) Into the Wild 9) Gorky Park 8) Eyewitness 7) Altered States 6) The Accidental Tourist 5) Smoke 4) Kiss Of the Spider Woman 3) Children of a Lesser God 2) Broadcast News 1) Body Heat
Percentile rating
98.54
June 6th, 2008 at 9:43 pm
I did really like him in Kiss… A bottle of Vicks Formula 44D probably helped lead me to this conclusion. He is good at playing uptight, pompous pricks, I’ll give him that. Maybe he can interview himself on Actor’s Studio.